Utility of flow cytometry in canine primary cutaneous and matched nodal mast cell tumor

• Published in: The veterinary journal (1997) Vol. 242; pp. 15 - 23
• Main Authors: Sulce, M., Marconato, L., Martano, M., Iussich, S., Dentini, A., Melega, M., Miniscalco, B., Riondato, F.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.12.2018
• Subjects: Animals; Antigens, CD - analysis; Dog; Dog Diseases - diagnosis; Dog Diseases - immunology; Dog Diseases - pathology; Dogs; Flow cytometry; Flow Cytometry - veterinary; Immunophenotyping - veterinary; Lymph node; Lymphatic Metastasis; Mast cell tumor; Mastocytoma, Skin - diagnosis; Mastocytoma, Skin - secondary; Mastocytoma, Skin - veterinary; Predictive Value of Tests; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-kit - metabolism; Skin Neoplasms - diagnosis; Skin Neoplasms - pathology; Skin Neoplasms - veterinary; Mast cell tumor; Flow cytometry; Lymph node; Dog
• ISSN: 1090-0233; 1532-2971
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tvjl.2018.10.004

•Flow cytometry (FC) immunophenotypic analysis was used to characterize canine mast cell tumors.•Draining lymph nodes (LN) were also assessed for mast cell infiltration.•FC was able to identify both mast cells and eosinophils in the tumor and to detect and quantify mast cells in LNs. Mast cell tumors (MCT) are among the most frequent tumors in dogs, but studies regarding canine mast cell immunophenotype are lacking. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of flow cytometric analysis of MCTs, to describe canine MCTs immunophenotype(s), and to evaluate the ability of flow cytometry to detect mast cells in lymph node aspirates. Thirty-four primary canine MCTs and 12 draining lymph nodes were evaluated regarding the expression of CD117, IgE, CD11b, CD18, CD44, CD34, CD25 and CD45. Distinct populations attributable to mast cells and eosinophils were recognized based on light scatters and CD117 positivity. Common antigens (CD18, CD45, CD44) and CD117 were detected in all cases; positivity for IgE and CD11b was found in 28 (82%) and 23 (68%) cases respectively, while CD34 and CD25 were occasionally expressed. A single multicolor tube (IgE/CD117/CD11b/CD21/CD5) allowed the identification of mast cells in lymph nodes, showing a high correlation with cytology in quantifying mast cells infiltration. In conclusion, flow cytometric analysis can be applied to characterize canine MCTs and can be used to detect the presence of mast cells in lymph nodes. The immunophenotype abnormalities observed may be useful to confirm the neoplastic nature of such mast cells but the diagnostic usefulness of atypical antigen expression remains to be clarified.